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History
Beginnings 1923 The origins of American Football emerged and became popular in the Midwest. Many local home-town teams were established and all around the nation there was talk about this cool new sport that people had never heard of before. Back then, they thought it was crazy to build little benches so people could watch these games, but hey - it was the beginning of a new pastime! 1942 Due mostly to the drive of World War II, America needed relief from the dreary happenings of war and the omnipresent thought of death. On April 11th, 1942, the FFL (America's first football league) passed a rule stating that you had to have a college degree to play football for an FFL team (This was to discourage pay spiking and encourage regulation - the beginnings of salary caps). People, who enjoyed watching and playing football for their local teams, became angry and started to relent the FFL for its limitation, as most players did not have degrees at the time. Later that month, Alan Rocswood, who was born in Augusta, Maine in 1905, decided that a new football league for any man who was over the age of 18, without the requirement of a college degree. This league, although highly unofficial, was established in June 1942. This league, at first nicknamed "Rocswood's League", started out very simple. Four teams made up his league. There were the North, South, East, and West All-Stars. Each team had a minimum of 18 players and a maximum of 36. The first game was held in Augusta, Maine, home of the North All-Stars on November 2, 1942 in front of 200 spectators. It was East vs. North. Since the playing rules weren’t thorough enough to establish proper refereeing, the first game was a tie. The public newspapers were generally negative about the enforcement of the game, and thus (initially), the league's debut. Here are the standings for 1943. Each team played a total of six games. There was no playoffs system, so East All-Stars were automatically declared the winners of the 1942 championship. EAST 4 0 2 .717 SOUTH 3 2 1 .667 NORTH 2 3 1 .398 0 4 2 .150 1957 League growth was initially slow, but the rule issues were hashed out immediately, and post-war interest in spectator sports (as well as an ample amount of young and energetic men) fueled the growth of the league, which was still referred to as "Rocswood's League". In response to the competitiveness of making it onto these four teams, there was initial discussions of putting together another league. People liked it back in the 1920s and 1930s when they could cheer for a home team (instead of North, South, East and West), and each team had already reached their maximum number of players, so there was player overload (a.k.a "free agency"). There were also complaints about the current championship system; When there was a year that two teams had the same top records, the team with most points scored was declared the champion. Ultimately, in response to administrative issues and player-submitted complaints, this brought up the idea that maybe there should be more than one "league". If you have two leagues, the best team from both could go head-to-head and fight for the championship. They took this idea to administration for a vote on January 4, 1957; The total vote was 23-1. The one nay-sayer, John Hope, was frustrated over Rocswood's lack of focus and severance issues that had previously occured against him in 1950 when his 'stint' at head coach was ripped away from him after dismal seasons. Because of Hope's frustration, and due to filing for bankruptcy in 1956 (thus being stuck at this job), he tried to assassinate Rocswood. The attempt failed when he found that his gun had no bullets inside. He was arrested and sent to jail for 24 years for attempted murder. 1958 An unknown conclusion in the paper stated that there were going to be three different leagues instead of their previous plan of two - each 'league' would act as a conference under separate management but governed under the same rules and jurisdicton from the original 24-person administration. The three leagues were established as the FAFF (Furry American Football Federation) on September 2nd, 1958. Altogether, there were a total of 18 teams (6 in each league.) These teams were established in Seattle, San Diego, Milwaukee, Chicago, Columbus (Ohio) and Little Rock for the National Football League (NFL), San Francisco, Los Angeles, Denver, Detroit, Philadelphia and New York City for the AFL (America Football League), and Phoenix, Houston, Kansas City, Baltimore, Orlando and Miami for the CFL (Continental Football League). Rocswood's League was dissolved the following day (September 3rd) into Baltimore (East), Chicago (North), Orlando (South) and San Francisco (West), with some players opting to join other teams instead. Due to issues with field-sharing, the Phoenix team was forced to relocate to Los Angeles and share the AFL team's field; A last-minute signing reflected this change. Despite early efforts to move the team elsewhere, nothing was ever fully developed and, thus, two teams remain in Los Angeles to this day. Rocswood became the coach of the Chicago Wolves. The first ever “Pro Teams Bowl” was held on February 11th, 1959. It was a late pro-team bowl due to travel issues. In addition, they had three league leaders, but only two could ever take on each other. The early system suggested that each team would take on the other once, then whoever won both games and whoever won one and lost one would play each other in the bowl. The two teams, the Detroit Speedsters (AFL) and Baltimore Orioles (CFL) were the first teams to play in the Pro Teams Bowl. Baltimore won, 23-17. The Columbus Attackers, who won first place in the NFL, did not advance because of losing both to Baltimore and Detroit in this playoff system. The 1960s 1963 The Baltimore Orioles, because of their previous advantage and pseudo-establishment as the East All-Stars prior to 1958, became the most profitable team in the leagues. In part this also helped the team be successful at winning many games and winning almost the entire last 5 Pro Teams Bowls. At the time (with adjustments to inflation) they held over $250 million, the most in all of the team's individual histories. Rules in the 1970s would later restrict individual team profitability. 1969 After Baltimore lost half of their team to retirement, their record fell from 11-5 in 1968 to 3-13 in 1969. The couch, Mike Aslester, moved on to coach the Los Angeles Litter, and moved the team to their own stadium in Ontario, California. The league denied the Litter from changing their name (to the Ontario Litter) in a 9-15 vote because of its semantic association with the Canadian province -- At the time, it was expected that the CFL was going to expand into Canada. Alan Rocswood’s Chicago Wolves would win their first "Pro Team Bowl" (renamed in 1966) against the San Francisco Earthquakes, 37-20. The Denver Horses almost fold indefinitely due to only one more-wins-than-losses season. Local organizations ran fundraisers and organized a $250,000 dollar loan to the team owner. This loan was not paid off in full until 2001. The Houston Texans were the only team to go to the playoffs ten years in a row without even going to one Pro Team Bowl. The 1970s 1970 The total number of games played was expanded from 12 to 16. Alan Rocswood moved on to coach the Miami Heat, who were largely unsuccessful and had more losses than wins in three of his four seasons (1970-1973). The Disney Demolition Demise (DDD) of '70 For the first time in FAFF history, the Orlando Disneys and Little Rock Miners played against each other on October 22nd, 1970. Teams usually did not play cross-conference with each other unless scheduling conflicts resulted in the meetings, thus the 12-year absence of such a meeting. With Orlando in the lead at halftime 31-3, Little Rock came back to astonish Orlando 41-38. This would become the biggest come-back in history until 1992. After the game ended, the referees began to decomission the game when players began to brawl (it is still not certain who began the brawl but it was a conceded effort by the Disneys.) This resulted in a stadium riot between the fans of the two teams; over $1.3 million in damage was done to Orlando's stadium because of arson, destruction of stadium property, and broken windows that made box seating susceptible to outdoor weather and rain damage. The stadium, in its state, was unable to be played in. An official investigation began; both teams were temporarily disqualified (and then permanently disqualified after an administrative vote) from competition for the rest of the year. Little Rock had a 6-1 record at the time, which would have still put them in the playoffs, but because of disqualification, put Chicago in 1st in 1970. They went on to win the Pro Team Bowl, but lost against the San Francisco Earthquakes (AFL), 24-3. This game is consistently ranked in the Top 10 for most influential games in FAFF history due to its remarkable game result, the ensuing destruction to the field, and the effect in had in league jurisdiction for future years. 1971 Even without Rocswood, the Chicago Wolves went forward and beat Mike Aslester’s Los Angeles Litter 10-7 in the Pro Team Bowl. This is the lowest-scoring Pro Team Bowl game in history. This season is also unique in that the first situation where all three teams one won and lost one game in the 3-way playoff system; the two teams with the most points scored in these wins were granted the Pro Team Bowl appearance; this ruling was reminiscent of Rocswood's League of the 1950s and fans of the third team (New York Apples) unsuccessfully filed a formal complaint against the Federation. 1972 Five teams were added into the league: Portland and Cincinnati in the NFL, Indianapolis and Connecticut in the AFL, and Charlotte in the CFL. Connecticut would become a phenomenon in the 1970s and 80’s, going to a record 10 '''pro team bowls, and winning '''7 '''of them. This time Chicago Wolves loses to the New York Apples (AFL), 35-17. Alan Rocswood is the first person inducted into the FAFF Hall of Fame when he announces his retirement from coaching after the 1973 season. His son, Jeremy, becomes the official recorder of all statistics between the 23 teams. Connecticut, starting off with a 6-10 season in their first year, drop the veteran quarterback and search for some younger talent to replace him. Receiving the 6th pick overall, they selected the 2nd quarterback chosen in the first round, John Fletcher. The Los Angeles Surfers are the first team to not win one game in their entire season (0-16) '''1973 Corpus Christi joins the CFL to make each league have 8 teams. The Connecticut Yankees’ rookie quarterback, John Fletcher, starts in the AFL. In his first year alone, he sets all records for his team, plus five for the whole AFL, and two for all the leagues. John Fletcher would also become the longest-playing quarterback (17 years), playing for the Connecticut Yankees (1973-1986), Kansas City Cougars (1987-1989), and San Antonio Alamoes (1990). He would go on to 10 pro team bowls (9 Connecticut, 1 Kansas City), winning 7, all Connecticut. He would be the MVP for 7 years in a row (1975-1982). He is considered the most successful football player in FAFF history, and is largely credited for the solidification of the FAFF as the forefront American Football league. Connecticut’s first year in the playoffs (record 13-3) takes them to the Pro Team Bowl. They beat the undefeated Charlotte Men, 13-7. John Fletcher threw 41 passes and completed 33 of them. This begun the phenomenon that was J-Fletch, as Charlotte was highly favored. The Charlotte Men were the first and only team to have won all their regular-season games (16-0). 1974 John Fletcher suffered a broken ankle, which put the Yankees at 10-6 by the end of the season. They lost their first playoff game against Philadelphia, thus barring a repeat. The New York Apples (AFL) defeated the Orlando Disneys (CFL) in the Pro Team Bowl, 39-20. Mike Aslester retired and was inducted into the FAFF Hall of Fame. The Milwaukee Deers change their name to the Milwaukee Reindeers. The 's' would be dropped in 1975 (For grammar nazis everywhere who question the plurality of the team name, their "schtick" was that they were not only "deers" but "dears", and the notion was they could "win fans anywhere they went with their ability to win and be a dear". This lost sensibility after the name change.) 1975 Quarterback John Fletcher and the Connecticut Yankees boost right back out of losing last year’s playoff game and make it back to the Pro Team Bowl. Connecticut Yankees beat the Portland Hikers (NFL) 35-3, the biggest difference of scoring in Pro Team Bowl history. Connecticut had a season of 14-2. John Fletcher, in his third year, set over 10 records. He also won his first MVP Award in 1975. 1975 San Francisco v.s. Detroit Dispute During a regular season rivalry game, the San Francisco Earthquakes actively complained of poor referee calling in a game against the Detroit Speedsters after the game ends. In a post-game investigation, it was found that one of the referees, Mario Bastielli, had had prior connections to the mafia, and was subsequently fired due to game-rigging suspicions. The other referees of the game were suspended for the 1976 season. Because of this, the AFL requested a rematch, which was granted by the federation for the first (and only) time. This second game saw San Francisco beat Detroit, but Detroit did not accept the loss since they had won the first game and Bastielli was not affiliated with the Speedsters organization, nor did the Speedsters know of the game rigging. A final game was ordered at the end of the season (thereby postponing the playoffs by three weeks) to find out the winner. After all of this fighting between the two teams, the game ended 21-21, a tie. Both teams would miss the playoffs as a result. St. Louis wanted a team in the leagues. They offered new president of the federation, Mike Ranciello, over a million dollars for a franchise, but he refuses. In response, Ranciello and the FAFF administration initiated preliminary salary capping and individual team profitability regulations on the 24 franchises, thereby curbing St. Louis' efforts to "buy" a home team in the FAFF. 1976 John Fletcher set a record for winning the Pro Team Bowl for the AFL four years in a row. The Connecticut Yankees shut out the Houston Texans (CFL) 20-0. He won the MVP Award again. John Fletcher was worth 6.1 million to keep in 1976 - the most expensive player in the league. 1976 Cincinnati suspension The Cincinnati Tulips were the first to critically break an official rule in game play regulation. In one half, the referees let the team get 4 time-outs, instead of the rule of 3, in a game versus the Columbus Attackers. This occurred when Tulips' coach Lynn Duckworth walked over to a sideline referee, pointed to a glitched-out time clock, and requested that his "last timeout" be granted. Cincinnati was not returning to the field immediately and so the referee granted the timeout to Duckworth. Although most people in the upstairs booth, and the statistics recorder, knew that the fourth timeout had been granted without interference, neither coaches approached or disputed the timeout, and the game resumed. Very soon after the game had been finished, in which Cincinnati had successfully won with a field goal that had been scored because of the fourth timeout, the Cincinnati Tulips were disqualified from entering the playoffs in 1976. Revolted, the Tulips organization dissolved the team for the rest of their season. They became the 3rd team to be disqualified out of competition by the league, and to this date remain the last team to be disqualified from competition. The coaching staff and fans saw this as an extremely strong penalty for a mistake that could have been resolved in a way similar to the 1975 San Francisco vs Detroit game, but the FAFF had vowed to never again allow a game recall. The FAFF stated that their hope was to curb the behavior from purposely causing game recalls by suspending the Tulips. A later and more thorough investigation found that Duckworth had known he was breaking the rule during the game, and was suspended from coaching in 1977. 1977 John Fletcher’s regime came to an abrupt halt when they did not even make it to the playoffs, which astonished thousands and questioned the Yankees' credibility as a masterful team. Indianapolis took their first crown as a result, beating the Los Angeles Surfers 23-19. Jesse Smits, the quarterback of the first-ever Pro Teams Bowl, was inducted to the FAFF Hall of Fame. "The '77 Wish from Heaven" A prolific dispute between the three leagues occurred in 1977, when the AFL had 7 out of their 8 teams with winning records, whereas the NFL had none. This was a difficult challenge for playoff seeding, where basic requirements in the rulebook were not defined enough to resolve the problem fairly. As it became “the 77’ wish from heaven,” they decided to ignore any regulations and put anybody with a winning record in it. Jose Cabrero, owner of NFL, was furious, but content to change this. The only losing AFL team, the Philadelphia Bald Eagles (1-15 season), were pushed into the middle of the problem; being the only “loser” team in the AFL explicitly set the organization at a low point, and have consistently tried to battle its omnipresent "failure" status by older fans. Playoff regulations and team gameplay rotation would prohibit this situation from occuring again in 1982. St. Louis offers 2 million for a franchise, but no settlements or negotiations are accepted by the owners of the NFL, CFL and AFL. 1978 The Connecticut Yankees beat the Seattle Seagulls in the Pro Team Bowl, 30-21. 1979 Franchises in Phoenix (NFL), Memphis (AFL) and Virginia Beach (CFL) are accepted to the leagues. This infuriated St. Louis, who were denied a franchise because of "subpar environmental conditions," inferring that Ranciello did not like the proposed organizational ethic in St. Louis. In a now-infamous quote by Alan Rocswood during a press conference on the matter, he said “Till the day I die, St. Louis will be disqualified from joining the FAFF." This would have implications in the coming years. The 1980s 1980 The Connecticut Yankees, led by John Fletcher, solidify their legacy status with another great season, and they win the Pro-Team Bowl against the Indianapolis Stallions, 27-11. The Baltimore Orioles changed their uniform colors, going from orange jersey and white pants, to black jerseys w/orange outline, and white pants w/orange stripe. 1981 A tragic start to the year for the whole Federation. John Hope, who had attempted to assassinate Alan Rocswood, was released from jail on February 2nd. Only weeks later, Hope drove from Huntsville, Alabama to Rocswood's home in Atlanta, Georgia. He barricaded his home with boards and then set the home ablaze, killing Rocswood, who died at age 61 on February 19th. His memorial services had team flags of all the football teams’ mascots lining the carry of his casket. Hope was instantly convicted and taken to jail, recharged with murder, and sentenced to life in prison with no parole. Rocswood's last Pro Team Bowl was seen three days prior to his death on the 16th, when the Connecticut Yankees once again finished victoriously. They played against the Phoenix Droughts. Phoenix’s quarterback James Lefebvre threw 4 interceptions, the most in Pro Team Bowl history. Connecticut won, 28-10. Even more controversy erupted when the long-time stadium owner Louis Ooterman (of St. Louis infamy) asked only five days after Rocswood’s death to grant his plea for a franchise in the 1982 season, and owner Mike Ranciello accepts with the offer of 3.5 million. The media jumped all over this, interpreting the move as an insult to Rocswood's vitality and their open opinion about how his league was "turning the other cheek to his legacy". A media conference a few weeks later after Rocswood's funeral, held by Ranciello, addressed the questions by explaining that these talks had started prior to Rocswood's death, and the league had been ready for the last two years to accept St. Louis. Many saw Ooterman as a money-grubbing opportunist and called for a boycott of all games against the team for the upcoming season. This amounted to very little, but the animosity that faced the St. Louis Rangers (who joined the AFL) was very high initially. The Rangers, along with The San Antonio Alamoes in the CFL and the Birmingham Dossiers in the NFL, joined the FAFF in April. Matthew Rogers, founding father of the CFL, was inducted into the FAFF Hall of Fame, as well as QB Steven Mack (NYA), RB Daemon Stoutamire (BAL) and WR Eric Davis (CHI). The Los Angeles Litter changed their uniform, due to a plea from fans to change the "flesh-colored" uniforms that some people claimed were designed to be preferant to "religious supremacy". They go from Sand-colored jerseys and white pants w/ red stripe to a green jersey w/sand elbow bar (which people also thought was stupid) and white stripe with white pants and darker green stripe. 1982 Connecticut slipped in the playoffs and gave the Indianapolis Stallions a chance for the Pro Team Bowl again for the AFL, but they slip too, and the Pro Team Bowl does not include Indianapolis or Connecticut for the first time in eight years. The Detroit Speedsters (AFL) lose to the Baltimore Orioles, 19-10. Strangely enough, James Lefebvre (of Pro-Team Bowl record-setting failure infamy) had been traded to Baltimore that year. The hatred of his prior loss was greatly subsided by the win, but historically he is remembered more for his loss. Abe Hopkins calls for the construction of a stadium in Billings, Montana, which he hoped would be suitable for a future franchise in Montana. The FAFF issued a statement to Hopkins stating that "they were not in consideration for further franchise expansion," and urged Hopkins to call off the construction, to which he refused. The Detroit Speedsters produced 5866 total offensive yards, the highest amount for any team in FAFF history. 1983 Connecticut beat Indianapolis in a back-and-forth shootout for the AFL Championship. Connecticut wins 44-37. They go to face the Baltimore Orioles once again at the Pro Team Bowl for th second time since 1979. John Fletcher was immediately considered a hero for football fans everywhere as his 10th season gave the Yankees a Pro Team Bowl win against the Baltimore Orioles, 30-14. After a 8-year contract, John Fletcher goes to Free Agency, to which his agent is overwhelmed. Teams from all three leagues offer negotiations to Fletcher, including Chicago, Little Rock, the L.A. Surfers, Miami, Virginia Beach, Kansas City and Houston. After a month on the fence, Fletcher decided to decline all - even a 10.25 million per year offer by the Kansas City Cougars. Two other league-sized stadiums, with the intent of hosting FAFF teams, were in the early stages of development around the U.S. Tacoma, Washington is building a dome and Omaha, Nebraska tells the FAFF about their stadium plans. The federation declined to comment about all franchise progression, again noting that they "had no interest at this time in seeking FAFF expansion." CFL has a record-low season. Three teams come up with a 3-13 record or less. San Antonio Alamoes (3-13), Orlando Disneys (3-13) and Corpus Christi Ladies (1-15) Gee, they sure act like ladies, now don’t they? 1984 Connecticut once again suffers another loss to the QB Sean McCloud’s raging-hot Indianapolis Stallions. The two teams had been at it since 1976. Indianapolis won, 27-20, and they go to win the Pro Team Bowl against the Charlotte Men, 41-26. Sean McCloud successfully breaks John Fletcher’s glory by being nominated for the MVP Award. The head coach of Connecticut Yankees, Vince Muerffel, retires from football. New coach Bobby Vandenberg comes in after having previously coached at San Diego for two years. The Billings, Montana stadium is completed. The FAFF denounces previous claims that they have no intent of expanding the federation, by announcing that every franchise will have to wait till 1988 before any new teams will be brought in. After several failed claims to make improvements to Phoenix's stadium, the team prepares its move to Tucson, Arizona after they approve the construction of a stadium in their city. Buffalo and Atlanta begin constructing their stadiums. The Pro Team Bowl was played in New York. For the past 30 years it had been played in Chicago, Illinois; the FAFF had announced that, starting with 1984, it would change host cities each years in order to avoid giving any team (specifically Chicago) home-field advantage and to provide tourism income for hosting cities. After an overwhelming amount of complaints from fans, the Los Angeles Litter make a return towards a more traditional uniform, opting for a light brown jersey and white pants with white and black stripes. Another team does not win a game all season. (Corpus Christi Ladies, 0-16) 1984 also marks the first year that the FAFF draft makes changes that hint a general move towards player needing college football experience in order to be drafted; although no rules are set, the attitude was under way for the FAFF as an all-time low of walk-on players detriments progression of the league. Mike Ranciello blames it on the rapid expansion of teams. An official statement from the Federation, 2 weeks after, made it clear that no team will be accepted into any league until 1990. Omaha suspends the construction of their stadium indefinitely in response. 1985 John Fletcher takes the Yankees team back to the Pro Bowl Team after beating the Columbus Attackers in the championship. Indianapolis failed to pass the first round playoffs that year. But unfortunately the Connecticut Yankees would lose the bowl to the Los Angeles Surfers, 17-6. John Fletcher later remarked in the post-game conference “I have lost my get-up... and I need a break;" sparking speculations of his retirement since his contract was once again up for negotiation. During the off-season, Fletcher instead signed with the Kansas City Cougars for 11 million, and gives Connecticut a first-round draft pick. Since Fletcher's departure, the Yankees have only gone to the Pro Team Bowl once. Corpus Christi Ladies continue their awful playing with a 4-12 season. Debate begins on whether the team should be moved to nearby San Antonio's emerging stadium, or altogether shut down. Los Angeles Surfers and Litter conjoin to make an overall 23-9 season. Connecticut Yankees’ retired coach Vince Muerffel was inducted to the FAFF Hall of Fame, along with Janis Sterling (DEN - the FAFF's first female player), Reddy Redman (CHI), Moreland Lawfel (MIA) and Rick Dennis (IND). The San Diego Lightning change their jerseys to blue with yellow lightning bolt down middle, along with a bunch of lightning bolts on their legs. The blue jerseys of Connecticut Yankees change to a navy (Seen as a move only reflecting the annexation of Fletcher, this would later be revoked in 1988), and the San Antonio Alamoes exchange their yellow jersey and black pants for a black jersey and yellow pants. The Seattle Seagulls welcome rookie Andrew Fauria to the NFL. One of the best wide receivers in history, he was elected MVP three times, but was on six different teams during his 11-year career in the FAFF. 1986 The Kansas City Cougars went to their first Pro Team Bowl in history after signing legend John Fletcher to their team. Having beaten the strong Houston Texans made them feel confident that the trophy was within their grasp. As they came in to face the amazing Indianapolis Stallions once again, John Fletcher threw 2 interceptions, and no touchdowns. Sean McCloud had the exact opposite. Final score: Indianapolis 21, Kansas City 7. With this Pro Team Bowl win for Sean McCloud against his long-time rival, he announced his retirement from the federation. The John Fletcher v.s. Sean McCloud matchups would officially come to an end. They ate dinner with each other after the Pro Team Bowl ended. Legend has it that Sean McCloud offered to pay for the meal, but Fletcher insisted, saying "You paid for the meal on the field, this one's on me." During this Pro Team Bowl, the Kansas City Cougars head coach, Leon Oeberling, challenged five plays, since the league at this time had no rule for total allowed challenges. Oeberling was notorious for challenging questionable plays, but instant replay was not quality enough yet to be conclusive enough to overturn most plays. The FAFF would later rule that each team would only get one challenge per game in 1992. The Corpus Christi Ladies opened a discussion to the federation of whether they should be moved to a different city. The first to respond was Billings, who had finished building their stadium in 1984. Negotiations between Billings and the Ladies supposedly had begun, but were never conclusive. The federation never heard further discussion so they never moved. Montana had trouble maintaining this stadium had to let their college team use it in the meantime in order to not default on its cost. Growth from colleges and walk-on volunteers is increasing. Sean McCloud (IND) is immediately inducted to the FAFF Hall of Fame, along with Roger Shannon (SF). Seagulls rookie Andrew Fauria caught 58 receptions for 679 yards and 4 touchdowns. 1987 The federation begins to reconsider the decision of not allowing any new franchises in the league until 1990, as the free agency begins to fill with most college graduates opting to be drafted. The San Diego Lightning get their first shot of fame in their 30-year history by beating the San Francisco Earthquakes, 17-11. Andrew Fauria began his long career by being traded to Kansas City in 1987, after two years in Seattle. John Fletcher and Andrew Fauria, together, made 110 catches for 1234 yards. They made it to the playoffs, but lost their first game to Orlando. Mike Ranciello retires from being President of the Federation. His final request was to approve the induction of one person to the FAFF Hall of Fame every year. The Federation approves team mascots; 22 of the football teams put out their first mascots. 1988 San Diego’s quarterback, Bill Boenen, was the star of the year, and took his team to the Pro Team Bowl again. A late comeback in the final minutes of the game gave themselves a second Pro Team Bowl win against the foolish Houston Texans, 31-30. John Fletcher works to lead a 10-6 season in Kansas City. This would be his last winning-record season. With the construction of the field finished in Tucson, the Phoenix Droughts move to Tucson. Disgruntled fans in Phoenix demand a new home team, and begin to make the necessary improvements to their stadium to make this happen. 1989 In March 1989, the Federation members convened to look into the growing Free Agency issue. Their promise of not having a franchise join the leagues until 1990 fell through when a record number of free agents were being "held hostage from playing football". On May 16th, the federation announced the approval of seven new teams for the league, thereby passing the number of teams in the fledging FFL. Buffalo, Phoenix and Omaha (NFL), Montana and Northern Michigan (AFL) and Atlanta and Tacoma (CFL). There were now 37 teams between all leagues. Only Northern Michigan was without a stadium at the time; they would play at Michigan Tech University's stadium in Houghton, Michigan until 1992. As a result, some of the lowest-recorded games in terms of attendance were recorded here. None of the new teams made it to the Pro Team Bowl in 1989. Andrew Fauria caught 13 passes for 187 yards due to an injury. The Pro Team Bowl was without San Diego Lightning, as the Houston Texans came back again and got redemption by beating the Memphis Blues, 40-17. In September 1989, after largely waiting for a Canadian team to join the FAFF, Canadian colleges start to filter into the NFL, AFL and CFL teams in the USA. This starts to overload free agency once again. The best record in this year was only 10-6, by Houston and Tucson. The 1990s 1990 John Fletcher was traded to the San Antonio Alamoes for 5.5 million for one year, after Kansas City denied to renew his yearly contract and Fletcher wanted one more chance to prove his historic run. In 1990, he threw 306 passes and completed 166, with 11 touchdowns - but 15 interceptions. This was the equivalent of a below-average quarterback, and critics let him know. He led San Antonio to a 8-8 season. After the 17th year of his career quarterbacking, Fletcher decided to retire from football. They celebrated his induction to the FAFF Hall of Fame by bringing fans from Connecticut to the largest stadium (NYA) and run an event and show in front of an audience. The number of people in attendance was 86,293; seven seats short of a sell-out. Most of them were Yankees fans. The televised event featured Fletcher, who gave a long speech about the success of his career and the enjoyment he had in the FAFF. As he walked out of the stadium, people chanted “FLETCHER." At the FAFF Hall of Fame building you can watch this video on a television there. John Fletcher now lives with his wife in Coral Gables, Florida. He is 58 years old. The Chicago Wolves returned to the playoffs after a long drought, and brought themselves to the Pro-Team Bowl Their record that year was 15-1. Their only loss during the regular season was to their opponent, the newly-renovated Atlanta Oranges. Chicago would lose to them again, 26-14. The new President of the FAFF, Ron Smith, announces that " ...beginning in the near future, there could be a large group of new teams introduced slowly but surely among the next ten years", due to the Canadian college Free Agency overload and would be now regulated based on Free Agency rates. Key locations were in Dallas and Washington DC - which had large metropolitan bases but no home team. Statistics were posted at local McDonalds restaurants, as one the first major FAFF sponsorships. 1991 Andrew Fauria, coming off his injury, was traded again from Kansas City to Philadelphia. Total Years: 2 Seattle, 3 Kansas City. He caught 125 passes for 1101 yards. The Los Angeles Surfers lost to the Los Angeles Litter in the Pro Team Bowl, 20-16. This was voted one of the best Pro Team Bowls in history due to its cross-town rivalry and close game result. Ron Smith announced that he was to step down from Federation presidency and become the NFL Owner, and that his brothers, Randy and Rick, were to be the AFL and CFL Owners. The Smith Brothers have owned the individual leagues ever since, but Randy announced he may retire in 2004. Samuel DeLonge was appointed from the Federation to be the next President a month later. The Birmingham Dossiers changed their name to the Birmingham Dixies via a state-wide vote and approval from the Federation. They also changed their jerseys from burgundy to ruby red. 1992 Andrew Fauria was unexpectedly traded from Philadelphia to Omaha (2 Seattle, 3 Kansas City, 1 Philadelphia), and recorded 36 catches for 450 yards in Omaha. 1992 Pro-Team Bowl Riots The Pro-Team Bowl was held in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The highly-favored Little Rock Miners were suddenly brought into the limelight in 1992, going from an average 7-9 record to an amazing 14-2. Their free-agent quarterback from Canada, Jon Ruegamer, as well as three great wide receivers and a running back, came healthy into the game. The Los Angeles Surfers were back again from losing the Pro Team Bowl in 1991. The Surfers led 20-10 at halftime, but Little Rock could not let the team prevail as the Miners came to win 26-23 when LAS kicker David Schwartz missed a 29 yard field goal that would have tied the game with 0:02 remaining. Had the team made it they would have caused the first overtime game in Pro Team Bowl history. Final score: Little Rock 26, L.A. Surfers 23. The coastal Virginia crowd, mixed with Los Angeles fans, got rowdy. Rioting had begun after the game ended due to some plays called back by the referees that swore that kept the Surfers from winning the game. Despite protocols being in place to prevent uncontrolled dangerous situations, two people died and 14 people were injured when they climbed up the goal post and brought it to the ground. In historic re-airings of the game, the post-game riots are not shown - however the horrific video and images still circulate around the internet. Despite its controversial and unfortunate outcome, the game is usually ranked in the top spot as the most memorable Pro Team Bowl in history. Los Angeles Surfers’ QB Tony Grey retires from football, and shortly thereafter checked himself in to a hospital. Grey was heavily addicted to sleeping pills and had been using steroids. A statement released in March 1993 noted that Grey "had been suffering from depression onset by the loss of two straight Pro Team Bowls, disconnection from society, and a failure of recognition by his teammates..." This was believed to be caused in part by Grey being a minority species (Anteater), and insinuated that Grey was treated poorly by the organization. The playoff system was changed to include the top 16 teams, then 8, then 4, then the pro-team bowl. This was later discovered that teams from the same league could end up playing each other in the pro-team bowl, but was changed to make it that one team must have one partner from the same league to play in that game in the first round. This means that one team could have a 8-8 or 7-9 finish and still make it to the playoffs if granted. 1993 Retired QB Tony Grey sues the Los Angeles Surfers, AFL and FAFF for $16 million, citing irreconcilable loss of profit (from premature retirement), emotional distress and damage of property. Two other retired players came forward with similar propositions; Janet Taylor (Los Angeles Surfers) and David Tullems (New York). The Federation and the three players settled out of court for an indisclosed amount, and mandatory regulations were set for the 1993 season that addressed workplace issues, discrimination, reporting conflicts anonymously, and standardized non-public tests for mental healthiness - in addition to services in place that would help any current players in the leagues who were currently battling this issues. The overload cannot be held back anymore. FAFF President Samuel DeLonge announces that there could be as much as 10 new teams entering the league by the year 2000. DeLonge would later retract this statement when no merit or resources could support this statement. Andrew Fauria was traded again to Buffalo (2 SEA, 3 KC, 1 PHI, 1 OMA.) With the Buffaloes, he made his Pro Team Bowl debut. During the season he caught 155 passes for 1326 yards. The Buffalo Buffaloes play in their first Pro Team Bowl against the cross-state rival New York Apples. Buffalo outscored New York 28-9. Uniquely, New York managed to never score one touchdown throughout their playoff run. (They had won the previous games 12-7 and 3-0.) Due to slipping attendance, Montana decided to split its franchise with the state of Wyoming, changing their name to the Montoming Ranchers. Since 1993, half of their home games have been played in the Billings, MT bowl and the other half are in the Laramie, WY double-sided stadium. 1994 The Dallas Knights are introduced to the AFL. The 1994 Pro Team Bowl was played in the newly-built Dallas Knights dome. The Chicago Wolves were pinned against the St. Louis Rangers. St. Louis came out to win the game, 34-27. Andrew Fauria once again had a great year as he caught 92 passes for 1006 yards. 1995 The 1995 Pro Team Bowl was held in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Chicago Wolves, reenvigorated by the acquisition of running back Jarold Redeclaus, win against the Buffalo Buffaloes, 35-17. After the Buffalo loss, Andrew Fauria was traded to Tacoma. (2 Seattle, 3 Kansas City, 1 Philadelphia, 3 Buffalo) Fauria said of the trade, "Wherever I am, that is my home. I play football there, I prove myself, and that's all that counts." The Washington Columbians were introduced to the CFL. The “STATS BOOK OF THE NFL” was published and avaiable for purchase in public book stores on March 18, 1995. The author, Greg Lane, also promised that the other books would be released very soon, and that eventually as the business grows there will be an updated book each year or so. Corpus Christi suffered another losing season. Record: 2-14. This sparked another round of questioning whether Corpus Christi should be relocated (especially with the immediate success of the Dallas Knights franchise in Texas). 1996 The Denver Horses became the second team in history to record a perfect season and was reasoned to be one of the best-organized teams in the history of the AFL. After 40 years, the Horses got their first look at what a Pro Team Bowl was like. QB Davey Redman said of the game: “The lights are as bright as they’ll ever shine on us - we're the perfect Denver team,” They recorded a 16-0 record, and had outscored their opponents 528-151. The Pro Team Bowl was played at the Surfer’s Los Angeles, California three-layered dome. As expected, the Horses trampled their opponents, the Tucson Droughts, 45-28 - becoming the first team to have a perfect season (Charlotte had lost their Pro Team Bowl in the 70's). The high-scoring game was due to many injuries on the Horses’ team. Davey Redman and the Denver Horses were placed in the FAFF Hall of Fame in 1999. In addition, LB Sedrick DeDecker, LB Thomas Rudenburg, C Dan Desremaux, WR Fred Bradshaw, Steven Holmberg, WR Tad Stevens, WR George Fulher, RB Sandre Jones, and QB Mike Honnis were placed into the FAFF Hall of Fame. The “STATS BOOK OF THE AFL” was released on March 20, 1996. Andrew Fauria was traded from Tacoma to Tucson. (2 SEA, 3 KC, 1 PHI, 3 BUF, 1 TAC). This would be his last year of football. He made a record 129 catches for anybody who played an 11th year and ran for 1400 yards on the Droughts’ team. He had wanted to re-sign for a deal with the Droughts, but when they declined, he took a sudden turn in the offseason and decided to retire. The Washington Columbians become the Washington Tigers. 1997 Wide Reciever-legend Andrew Fauria is inducted into the FAFF Hall of Fame. The Denver Horses returned to the Pro Team Bowl to play against the Atlanta Oranges. The Horses once again were victorious, beating Atlanta 21-7. QB Davey Redman never threw an interception in the playoffs. This Pro Team Bowl was held in Baltimore, Maryland. Vernon Kwalczinski (raccoon), Vice President of the FAFF, enters the office on September 23, 1997 (taking over for DeLonge, who retired for medical reasons). He has been in office ever since. 1998 The FAFF expansion of the 1990's was "completed" as the final teams entered the FAFF. Oklahoma and Green Bay in the NFL, Grand Rapids and Virginia in the AFL, and Boston in the CFL. The number of teams in the leagues reaches 44 - 12 more than the FFL. The Milwaukee Reindeers reach the Pro Team Bowl - breaking the curse, as this was their debut for the first time against the well-known 70’s team Connecticut Yankees. The Yankees weren’t as fortunate in 1998, as the Reindeers won 19-14. This Pro Team Bowl was held in Chicago, Illinois as a "Welcome Back" bowl, and remains a favorite bowl game among historians. The “STATS BOOK OF THE CFL” was released on March 15, 1998, as well as an updated version of the NFL and AFL books. Montoming’s team wins all games at home in Montana, but loses all in Wyoming. The Tucson Droughts experience a real drought, as the grass foundation’s soil is too dry - driving the cost to maintain it beyond the limits set by the Federation on stadium maintenance. The foundation’s dryness causes the Droughts to move to Albuquerque, New Mexico for one year. Diehard fans refer to the 1998 Tucson Droughts as the "Albuquerque Droughts". 1999 The first round of FAFF football cards for the league go on sale at all hobby shops. They also include a 98, 95, 90, 85, 80, 75, and 70’s group of lesser football cards. Ironically, football cards would be discontinued in 2006. The Cincinnati Tulips finally make it to a Pro Team Bowl after all these years, but they are shut out by the reborn Indianapolis Stallions, 17-0. This Pro Team Bowl was held in San Francisco, California. The 2000s 2000-2003 2000 PRO-TEAM BOWL: Dallas 24, Indianapolis 21. 2001 PRO-TEAM BOWL: Indianapolis 35, Baltimore 13. 2002 PRO-TEAM BOWL: North Michigan 16, Portland 7. 2003 PRO-TEAM BOWL: Little Rock 26, Baltimore 17. 2004 PRO-TEAM BOWL: Little Rock 14, Detroit 10. 2005 The Columbus team has struggled in the past in playoff runs, but with a reinvented defense they were able to march to the pro-bowl, held in Miami. Within the last three minutes, Columbus took the lead with a field goal, and Ruegamer, now an ancient quarterback, tossed an interception which solidified Columbus’ win. PRO-TEAM BOWL: Columbus 16, Little Rock 14. In an endless debate since the mid-90’s about the fact the CFL is one team short (considering that they are sometimes ignored) the league holds a poll for voters across the nation to pick a new city to be granted a franchise. Looking mainly for an area where the nation lacks a football team, they list 6 locales: Iowa, Pittsburgh, Salt Lake, Dakota, Cleveland and Las Vegas. Iowa, Salt Lake and Dakota were cut from the list until it was left with three cities. After about a 1 month delay with all 3 cities being within 6% of each other, the poll remained unsettled, and by a chairmen vote all the cities were ignored and, instead, Minneapolis won a franchise. Even though much of the nation was angry, no changes were made. The city chose the “Penguins” as their team name. Also, in response to fans around the northern Michigan area, they change their name from the Foresters to the Pioneers. 2006 Minneapolis’ first game is this year.